JICA-RI Researchers Attend "Asian Approach to Climate Change Adaptation and Disaster Resilience" Conference

On August 1and 2, government officials and development specialists representing more than 10 countries convened in Hoi An, Vietnam for the ninth meeting of “the Asian Approach to Development Cooperation (AADC) dialogue series. The AADC series aim to promote development effectiveness by facilitating mutual learning among both emerging and traditional donors on critical issues facing the Asia region. This conference focused on climate change, which has adversely affected the Asia region.

The conference was jointly organized between the Asia Foundation (TAF) and the Korea Development Institute (KDI). JICA-RI Senior Research Fellow Tomonori Sudo and JICA Expert Takaaki Kawano attended the event, together with more than 40 representatives from multilateral and bilateral agencies, academia, the private sector, and international organizations.

In his keynote speech, Dr. Wonhyuk Lim, Director and Vice President of the Department of Competition Policy at KDI, overviewed the challenges facing international cooperation on climate change, and introduced a relevant debate on post-2015 development agenda.

Sudo served as a moderator in the session on “Private Sector Engagement in Climate Change Resilience” where the presentation focused on private-sector measures against disasters. The session highlighted the efforts, such as risk management against increasing natural disasters and climate change in Asia, and the urgent preparation for introducing business continuity plans (BCPs) in the event of a disaster. It was also pointed out that risk management has become the most powerful driving force behind the development of adaptation measures, given climate change regarded as a business risk. While a lack of knowledge about climate change, constrained resources, and an absence of urgency limit private sector’s adaptation approaches, the countermeasures were also proposed such as: governments’ clear direction for climate change policies; fair allocations of public resources; and need of capacity development for the private sector.